Swooshing through the vastness of trans-green cockpits....

QX-8 Anopheles, originally uploaded by Crimson Wolf.

That's what recent starfighter by popular Flickr user Kevin (Crimson Wolf) is. The use of dark blue is also nice in combination with the organic vibe coming from the wires, tubing, and other whatnot going on in this crazy, tight, little fighter.

Snip snip!

Maybe it's just me, but there certainly something Burton-esque about Arkov's latest creation, an Animé-style mannequin posing with large scissors. It's got a skirt, massive boots and a mechanical hand. What's not to like? Yah, OK, the scissors scare me a little too. But apart from that?

~John

Pirates Ahoy! - Interview with Luke Watkins

Ironically the same name as one of BrickSpace's previous admins I am pleased to introduce our second interview in the series with Luke Watkins (Derfel Cadarn). This builder is well known for his rapid creation of majestic and large pirate dioramas. And without further adieu let's get into the interview I had with Luke.
To start off describe yourself to the readers...
Im 26, and ive had Lego since the age of 5 when i inherited my older brothers collection of classic space, town and technic, and from then on i allways got sets every Xmas and birthday till i was old enough to start buying it myself. Ive never had a 'dark ages', as ive allways bought sets every year, just for collection purposes. If i saw a set that i thought looked cool i'd buy it, build it, then put it away. Its was only when i moved last year that i decided to go through my collection and start moccing, so im still pretty new to the scene.

Also as a follow-up to the first question, what communities or sites can you be found on? Where are you LEGO hangouts?
The first online Lego forum i joined was Classic-Castle, and i was active there for a few months as the first few mocs i built were castle themed. Then i went onto pirates and thats when i discovered Eurobricks which has an excellent pirate forum as well as other themes. Im a member of most Lego forums which i all use, but Eurobricks is where im most active.

Are you inspired by any other builders in the community? Maybe works of other that aren't LEGO even?
Theres a lot of great builders out there, but im mainly familiar with those who build in the pirate and castle themes. Slyowl always produces great mocs and i love all the new techniques he comes up with, plus hes also from the UK. Captain Green Hair and Bonapart make some of the best Lego ships ive seen, and I Scream Clone and Kris Kelvin have been producing some great mocs as well recently. I also have to mention DNL, as i think his castle mocs are some of the best as he likes to build with a lot of realism and detail which i myself like to do.

Your mostly know for you pirate builds which are quite impressive, but do you like to dabble in any other themes?
Pirates is my favourite theme to build in, but i am a big fan of Castle and i hope to build quite a few Castle orientated mocs this year. Im also quite keen to build some Town and Train mocs, and Western looks fun, so maybe some mocs there too.

What are your plans for the future? Will you continue with your massive pirate dios?
I hope to allways continue with my large Pirate mocs as theres still so many ideas ive got planned out. Allthough i wont be putting out so many this year as i want to fit in some other themes as well.

I know this may be hard to do, but if you were to pick a favorite creation of yours, which would it be?
My two favourite creations are The Legend Of Porthgwarra and St Cadocs Church, but if i was to pick just one, i would have to pick St Cadocs, as i think it showcase my typical style of history realism and detail, not to mention all the 1x1 round plates! Allthough it seems my most well known moc is For Whom The Bell Tolls.

On a final note are there any creations in the works that you'd like to share?
Ive got part 2 of my Myths & Legends series coming up, and i will be keeping that series going, hopefully tackling Sleepy Hollow for part 3! Ive been planning for a long time on bringing the 'Warlord Chronicles' by Bernard Cornwell to life. Which are the books i got my name 'Derfel Cadarn' from, so hopfully be starting that this year. I will still be fitting in my usuall Pirate dios here and there, and MAYBE a giant sailor pulling 9 or 10 pirate ships through the sea by their anchor chains :)

Thanks again to Luke for that great interview. Expect another more close to home interview coming in the next coming weeks or so. I hope you've enjoyed the start of this new series so far.

Bell Tower

If someone asked me to name the true undiscovered talent of our community, quy would pop up on the list quite near the top. He gets a fair amount of hits, but certainly not enough to justify his amazing building talent. Whilst his latest creation, the Bell Tower from the latest Pokémon games, is not his best work, I feel that I need to blog something of his and this is as good a chance as any.

Despite having a limited number of dark blue and red pieces, quy has created a bright, pop art-ish tower - and you don't need to be a Pokémon fan to appreciate it.

~John

Brickspace Dictionary: Double-stud cheese SNOT

Double-stud cheese SNOT (n.) (technique)

The double-stud cheese SNOT technique has recently been discovered by Lego Monster. A simplified version of it had also been conceived by Moko.

The idea works by fitting cheese slopes sideways into the space between a tube (found at the centre of four studs, on the underside of a plate/brick) and the corner of the piece. The cheese slopes fit almost perfectly, with some friction and little damage to the parts. This is a fully legal technique.

There are two ways of utilising this geometry. The first is where you fit cheese slopes into the bottom of one plate and put another plate on top. The construction is stable, but the exact height between the two plates cannot be measured in plates or half-plates. There is also a gap between the plates.

The second way of using the cheese slopes is by using a plate and a brick, as seen above. This option removes the gap, so there is a simple geometry: the resulting construction is 4 plates high. However, when using this technqiue, remember to fit the cheese slopes into the plate first, then fit that into the brick. Doing this the other way round will mean putting the plate will push the cheese slopes into the brick, and getting them out will be tricky.

This technique does not apply to 1xn bricks or plates, since they do not have large tubes, and don't have enough space in their underside. Contrary to what you may think, this technique can be used on a 2x2 brick/plate - but with two cheese slopes at opposite corners. This still provides ample clutch.

Kart Racing

Kart Racing (And the winner is...)(2) dbz LEGO, originally uploaded by ZetoVince.

This new racing cart by Flickr builder ZetoVince is fantastic an makes use of parts you wouldn't expect and in ways you wouldn't expect. It is also part of his contribution to LUGNuts 30th build challenge where there are two teams (Team Nathan and Team Lino). The teams are split by the beginning letter of usernames and this entry is a fantastic one for Team Nathan although I may be a little bias since I'm also supporting Team Nathan. A fantastic creation nonetheless and the photography is great here.

Home Sweet Home

Over the past few weeks, Worker201 has been making a whole range of home furnishings. There's flower vases, TVs, and some wonderful chairs. It seems like I have competition, ha ha!

~John

Save 6 Music!

Today I bring you yet another great music video Brickfilm from OldScratch. You should probably remember his awesome video of 'Knucklehead' by Fight Like Apes, which I blogged yesterday.

This video features an adaption of David Bowie's song 'Changes' (Bowie is the first guy you see in the video, in a clearly-Peter-Reid set). The adaption was written and performed by Adam Buxton, in hope of saving the radio station 6 Music, which the BBC is closing as part of a reshuffle or something dumb like that. Buxton is a DJ on 6 Music, and so has tried to save his career with this version of Bowie's classic song.

Also, I think this is the first time I've seen Arealight's custom hairpieces in a Brickfilm. Good one, OldScratch.




~John

LDD and LU?

Recent discovery by EuroBricks user superkalle is a new piece of code that can be placed into the LDD software (no worries because he even provides very detailed instructions) of accessing a special database of LEGO elements that have never been released on LDD and in colors LEGO has never produced. This new theme is the LEGO Universe theme which acts in the same manner as Ldraw and MLCad. I have applied the new theme to my version of LDD and find it much easier to use. I think it is also easier to make instructions and such if builds are mostly straightforward. There are also extra tools in this new version of LDD and as mentioned above exclusive LEGO colors that parts aren't ever available in. Check out the new code here.

A few things to keep in mind are that you can't check the price of anything you build in this mode as the parts aren't actually available only digital.
This goes along with the above statement, but you also can't buy whatever you make.

Knucklehead.

It's been a while since we've seen new animations from Brickfilmer OldScratch. It looks like he's starting a whole new age of Brickfilms, applying his genius in animation and comedy sketches to the Bricks in Motion generation. Many of you may remember his films 'Out of Time' and 'A Wasted Journey' from the old Brickfilms.com podcast.

Well, be prepared to be blown away again, with this music video of the Fight Like Apes song 'Knucklehead'. Because what's better than a Power Miners music video with OldScratch's set design and animation, and guest vocals from Keshen8? Nothing.

Bricks in Motion Awards: 2010 Winners!

Bricks in Motion.com have just held their annual BiM Awards - the Oscars of the Brickfilming world. The winners were announced in a live chat feed yesteday, but in case you didn't want to scan through the transcript of the entire chat, here's the winners in a handy list:

BEST ANIMATION: A Clone Halloween (Fancypants)

BEST SCREENPLAY: Days of our Pizza (Keshen)

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY: The River (Night Owl)

BEST VISUAL EFFECTS: Picturesque (Nick Durron)

BEST SET DESIGN: Alles ist die Noppe (Nichtgedreht)

BEST SOUND DESIGN: The River (Night Owl)

BEST ORIGINAL SCORE: The River (Night Owl)

BEST VOCAL PERFORMANCE: Keshen as Febrizzio in Days of Our Pizza

BEST ENSEMBLE CAST: It's the Network (Lego Shark Productions)

BEST SERIES: Nightly News at Nine (Fallen Tomato)

VIEWERS' CHOICE: The River (Night Owl)

BEST FILM: Alles ist die Noppe (Nichtgedreht)


As always, I have my own opinions. For Best Animation, I would have much rather given the award to The Force Unleashed, an amazing lightsaber fight also made by Fancypants. So, though it was for the wrong film, at least Fancypants got the award.

Days of Our Pizza is indeed a very well scripted and a very funny film, but it is only a comic sketch. It would have been nice to give the Screenplay award to a film with a well thought-through script with a clear beginning, middle and end and character development to top. A good script is key to any film, and whilst Days of Our Pizza didn't have a bad script, there is room for improvement.

I totally agree with all the awards that Night Owl's The River won. It is an amazing film, and it gave me chills when I first saw it at the STAR closing chat last year. The cinematography and sound design work in perfect harmony to create a truly unique and unforgettable experience.

I seem to remember I was less happy with Picturesque. Whilst the visual effects do deserve their BiM award, the script was atrocious and the overall plot was really not good. I won't watch all three parts now to remind myself - you can watch them for yourselves. I seem to remember the death of one of the main characters is almost completely ignored, in one of the later parts.

Finally, I am glad that the Nightly News at Nine and Alles ist die Noppe have been recognised as the amazing Brickfilms they are. I remember blogging Alles ist die Noppe sometime last year, it's a mesmerizing film that has such style and an entrancing atmosphere. The Nightly News at Nine is a series of quick, witty and well-scripted Brickfilms in a news show format. I'm glad someone else liked it as much as I did.

Oh, and thanks to Zach Macias for letting me know about the winners so quickly. The BiM feed hasn't been showing up in my RSS reader, so I would have otherwise missed it.

~John

There be Ostriches here...

 I don't have a lot to say about this creation by Titolian, save that it has some of the most ingenious parts usage I have ever seen.  Enjoy.

Dr. S.

Farewell, Nnenn.

It is with great sadness that I must report on the tragic death of Nate 'nnenn' Nielsen. He was a big figure in the community, with a whole scale and a part (rubber band holder) named after him. He will be greatly missed even by those who have criticised his methods (myself included).

I will take a quote from Keith Goldman's very well written post on TBB:

Nate’s death was the result of an automobile accident earlier this month. A resident of Tekoa, Washington, Nate was a father, an artist, and a professor specializing in graphic design. Nate is survived by his beloved wife and two sons ages 3 and 8.

It is important to Nate’s family that he is remembered by our community, one that he took great joy in participating in. Above all they want Nate to be remembered as a devoted husband and father, and for us to know that his interest in the brick was inseparable from his love for his boys.

I am truly shocked to hear of his death, and I hope you too realise just how sad this situation is. Nonetheless, Nate's legacy should live on. Keith is organising a formation of Vic Viper spacecraft, in the style of Nnenn, to be shown at Brickworld 2010 in Chicago this year. They will be arranged in a traditional "missing man formation", which is common at memorial events around the world. For more information contact Keith at legomankeith@aol.com .


~John

Interview with Tyler Clites

Hey everyone you may have noticed the as of late stagnant posting on the blog. The only six posts in March may have shown that, but no longer! We are back with this new interview when I talked with popular builder Tyler Clites (Legohaulic) for a building interview. All of his creations are rockin' so I hope you enjoy this interview I had with Tyler.



To start off describe yourself to the readers...

Well...I'm essentially a loner. I enjoy spending time by myself. I'm a very positive upbeat person with a corny sense of humor. I thrive on being creative. I love a challenge. If someone says it can't be done, I'm going to try to do it.

Also as a follow-up to the first question, what communities or sites can you be found on? Where are you LEGO hangouts?

My loner tendencies show in my online activity. I'm most active on Flickr and Builders Lounge.

Are you inspired by any other builders in the community? Maybe works of other that aren't LEGO even?

I'm primarily inspired by uniqueness! If a builder builds something that hasn't been done before or uses pieces in a unique way, it is a safe bet that I'll be inspired by it. The same goes for concept art, which also serves as a big source of inspiration.

I think it shows that you don't really conform do any theme and your creations show great amounts of creativity, where do you manage to find these ideas?

Most of my ideas just come out of nowhere. I don't sit down and decide to come up with an idea. Sometimes a technique, a photo, a piece of art, or something I see in my daily life will inspire an idea. I start doodling with pieces and something evolves from that.

Do you have any plans for the future? Even those not including LEGO?

Immediately, I plan on finishing college and finishing my project for Brickworld. Hopefully I can find a job at some point that will allow me to be creating something new and different each day. I despise the mundane.

If you had to pick a favorite creation of your which do you think it would have to be?

The Inquisitor would probably be my favorite.

Are there any creations you have in the works that you would like to share in this interview?

I have several thing in the works some I'll share and others will have to wait. I'm working on a dk blue version of the Bladerunner Spinner, and some TLG style mocs/sets for the Put Your Bricks Where Your Mouth Is challenge.

And on a final note is there any building advice you can give to the readers along with any other tips you have?

Build what you like and how you like. Don't let other people's opinions or perceptions determine how you build. This goes for any type of creative medium.


Thanks again Tyler for that excellent interview. From now on I'm going to try and get a new interview up every two-four weeks so stay tuned for the next one!

Wrath MBT by Pierre

Wrath MBT, originally uploaded by Pierre E Fieschi.

Recent up and coming building Pierre E Fieschi is absolutely fantastic at building and I think all of his talents really come together in this sci-fi tracked vehicle. The usage of parts is fantastic along with all of the angles he has managed to achieve. If you can believe it the turret is 5 years old!

Arios Type Hardsuit

Arios Type Hardsuit, originally uploaded by Freedom01.

This simple yet intricate (I know a little ironic) hardsuit by Flickr user Freedom01 is great and has a nice Gundam vibe going for it. The use of the color orange is also very appealing. Nice work!

Happy Easter!

Peter Cottontail, originally uploaded by Heather LEGOgirl.

From Heather LEGOgirl that is! Her recent Easter creations is great in fitting Easter colors and even a cool backdrop. This little 'working' vignette can get anyone in the mood for a nice relaxing Easter. Since I mentioned working we should show you all Heather's mechanics on the inside of this nice vignette.

There goes the little bunny Peter Cottontail spreading Easter joy.